Cell Phones

Like most people, i too have a cell phone. I've been a Sprint subscriber since 2000 and being a 20-something year old, I accept that it's part of my daily life. That being said, I've had an odd reoccurring experience lately.

While in school, classmates would turn their phones to vibrate (which is extremely loud in a quiet lecture hall) while mine was consistently turned off. I've found no statistics on what proportion turns their phones off vs vibrate even though it would be an interesting study. On one occasion i had a classmate who had his phone out but that's because his wife was pregnant and expecting any day which is 100% understandable.

Every couple weeks i turn my phone off for a day or even the weekend. I've come to accept that i am not considered "normal" because i do this. Once again, this weekend i had a friend call and was upset that i didn't answer my phone when they called because it was off. Because i have a cell phone, apparently i'm supposed to be able to take calls 24/7 from people. I find this idea to be deeply offensive.

It bothers me that in our culture of instant communication that people can have the nerve to expect that you should always be reachable. This is beyond a privacy issue in my eyes. When did we allow ourselves to reach this level of forced social interaction? There have been studies about BlackBerry users who are obsessively checking their emails and freak out when their service goes out for 10 minutes. (no url suplied but a simple search will find plenty of examples) Why is it that we as a culture believe now that we're supposed to answer the phone just because it rings? If you're in heavy traffic while searching for an address and the weather is terrible, do you answer your cell when it rings? I'm sure you said "of course not" but how many of you REALLY mean it?

I have one friend that doesn't have a cell phone and doesn't appear to be in any major hurry to get one. I have said repeatedly that if my phone dies or if Sprint pisses me off, i'll drop it completely and walk away from these devices. I know one person that was set on tossing his phone after his contract expired and just having a land-line. Even with his g/friend offering to pay for one, he seemed dead set on ditching wireless communication. Needless to say, he caved in and is still amongst us "normals".

The benefits of having a cell are great. I love the long distance for obvious reasons. It's also nice if my job needs to get ahold of me to call me in early (thus making extra $$). Internet access for a news fiend like me is another huge bonus. It's easier to get ahold of people if you go out and plans change. Despite all of this, i feel no true need to have one. I survived while in ireland for 3 weeks without one. I turn mine off all of the time. Oddly enough, the only reason why i carry mine as much as i do is because i'm used to the physical weight in my left pocket.

In the past 5-10 years we have made cell phones a key part of our every day lives. Most troubling is, walk into Wal-Mart (or wherever) and look at how many kids (under 15) are walking around with them in hand. Look at how many displays for cheap phones you see and how the packaging is geared towards that age bracket. Look how many kids you see using their cell phones as a music player as they walk through a crowded store. Now ask yourself if you see anything wrong with what is now the "norm".

My point???

It's politically correct to preach about energy conservation and recycling but heaven forbid if anyone looses their cell charger or even their bottled water!

We have artificial holidays like Earth Day and Sweetest Day. How about a day where people turn off their phones? I am seriously considering setting aside a day or even weekend every month that i will keep my phone off. If anyone is interested in participating and has suggestions as to when this should take place, i am willing to hear them.